A TOWN centre nightspot is gearing up to host a new type of entertainment – lap dancing.

Harpers on Onslow Street, formerly The Drink, will operate in the style of a gentleman’s club on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 5pm till late.

A topless dance will cost customers £10, while a nude dance will be £20.

Although an official launch date has not been set, it is expected to be in early October.

Despite having a licence to offer lap dancing at his premises for many years, before now club owner Michel Harper chose not to utilise it.

“New licensing legislation has meant that we have had to look for niche markets as many large pubs are like nightclubs now,” he said.

As the entrepreneur’s casino project is “unlikely to progress in the foreseeable future” he has invested money in his existing premises.

The borough council has recently launched a second consultation on gaming.

Mr Harper has not given up. “I am absolutely convinced that there is a demand for this product,” he said. This is the first time that the Onslow Street venue has had a full and complete refurbishment in 14 years.

Harpers will offer a comfortable, luxurious and more up-market environment, Mr Harper said. The lap dancing nights will have a ‘Venus entertains Mars’ theme and women can also come into the club. “It will be a very luxurious environment, with table service and discreet areas where pole dancing will take place,” he said. However, it is not only men who will enjoy this new form of entertainment, the businessman said. At the adjoining Voodoo Lounge club, male dancers will entertain women one night a week.

“Why should the guys always be catered for?” Mr Harper said. “I think girls have a better time out together a lot of the time.”

Around 30 to 40 dancers will be at the club during a lap dancing evening, although the businessman hopes to have close to 100 on his books.

“We are looking for stunning, fit young ladies and gentlemen, aged between 18 and 35. No experience is necessary,” he said.

Mr Harper is hoping that people will come from all over the county and beyond to take advantage of these new facilities. “I think lap dancing is booming all over the UK,” he said. “It is not offensive in any way other than to those who take a moral high ground. It is a socially accepted activity. “I challenge those who have never experienced it to come and enjoy a night out. “Those who have experienced it, I am sure will enjoy the facilities we are going to provide.”

Mr Harper added: “I have frequented lap dancing venues in luxurious surroundings with a vista of beautiful girls in the company of my friends. It is fantastic.”

David Wright, chairman of licensing at Guildford Borough Council, said that lap dancing was new to the town. “There are not many premises where this sort of thing could take place,” he said. “Certainly not in the centre of Guildford. It has to be a discreet place out of the public eye.”

He said Mr Harper has conditions to meet before he can go ahead. Harpers now falls within a designated area of cumulative impact, which states that risks to law and order, public nuisance, and child protection must be considered before future licences are granted.